WMU board: Hangar purchase OK’d, room and board increased

The Western Michigan University Board of Trustees reaffirmed its commitment to WMU’s College of Aviation campus Wednesday, agreeing to purchase an airplane hangar at W.K. Kellogg Airport.

The board also voted to raise traditional student room and board rates for 2015-16 by 3.3 percent during a meeting in Battle Creek.

The board voted unanimously to purchase the Eaton Corp. hangar, which stands in the middle of the College of Aviation campus at 165 N. Helmer Road, for $400,000. The agreement includes lease with the City of Battle Creek for the land under the hangar at the cost of $7,700 annually until 2023. WMU has he option to extend the lease for 10 years.

WMU President John Dunn spoke about the importance of the Battle Creek aviation campus to the overall mission of the university, telling a mostly full room, “Why would we go anywhere else?”

Battle Creek Mayor Deb Owens said hearing Dunn’s comment gave her “butterflies just thinking about it.”

“We have an incredible partnership with the College of Aviation and Western Michigan University to begin with,” Owens said. “For them wanting to develop more at the airport speaks volumes to what the aviation school is providing and it only helps them all the more to expand their program here in Battle Creek.”

The purchase of the hangar was one of three major items approved unanimously Wednesday.

After a presentation by Dean of Students Diane Anderson, the board approved a 3.3 percent traditional student room and board hike beginning in the fall semester of 2015. Anderson said the new rate in part supports “continued responsible fiscal management and educational campus living that is affordable, attainable and attractive.”

The increase also helps WMU to remain competitive with in-state schools as well as similar schools in the Mid-American Conference, she said.

Anderson also lauded the progress of Western Heights, a new freshman-focused residence hall that opens in the Center Residential Neighborhood later this year. The board’s vote included approving a summer session rate for Western Heights of $1,400 per session, effective in 2016.

WMU currently operates with 20 residence halls, seven dining facilities, six cafes and five apartment-style complexes.

The board also approved a motion to bring the university into compliance with the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 that requires public higher education institutions to charge in-state tuition rates and fees to qualifying veterans and eligible spouses and children.

WMU’s current practice is to charge in-state tuition for military members, veterans and their dependents.

The change provides in-state tuition and fees for veterans, military, spouses and dependents.

WMU’s Board of Trustees is scheduled to meet again June 3 at the Bernhard Center on WMU’s campus in Kalamazoo.